Single-cam and dual-cam compound archery bows have a pulley mounted on one or both ends of the bow limbs to control the draw force on the bowstring and bending of the limbs as the bow is drawn. In single-cam bows, there is a power cam on the end of one bow limb and a wheel on the end of the other bow limb to facilitate control or take-up of a power cable at the power cam and let-out of the bowstring at the power cam as the bow is drawn. In dual-cam bows, power cams are mounted on the ends of both bow limbs. One or, more typically, two power cables extend from each power cam toward the opposing power cam or the opposing limb.
Compound archery bows typically also include a cable guide to hold the power cables away from the path of travel of the bowstring cable and the arrow propelled by the bowstring cable as the bowstring cable is drawn and released. The cable guide typically includes a cable guide rod fixedly or adjustably mounted to the bow handle and extending away from the handle adjacent to the power cables. A cable slide is engaged by the power cable(s) and slides along the rod to hold the power cable(s) out of the path of travel of the bowstring cable and the arrow propelled by the bowstring cable.
It has become a trend for target shooters to use large-diameter arrow shafts when shooting target because they increase the chance that the outer diameter of the shaft will cut a higher score ring on the target. However, such large-diameter shafts can cause a problem because the arrow fletchings can interfere with the power cable(s). The cable guide rod and cable guide can be offset to address the problem of clearance for the shaft and the fletchings as the arrow passes the power cables when the bowstring is drawn and released. However, such additional offset increases the angle of the power cable as it leaves the groove on the power cam, causing excessive wear on the cable. Additional offset of the cable slide rod can also cause the power cable to make inadequate contact with a draw stop on the pulley at full draw because of the cable angle as the cable leave the pulley. At full draw the cable tension greatly increases and any additional offset of the cable guide to get more shaft and fletching clearance increases the torque on the bow limbs.
A general object of the present disclosure is to provide a cable guide arrangement that addresses one or more of these potential problems. Another general object of the present disclosure is to provide a cable guide system that can be mounted on a pre-existing bow and achieve the foregoing objective.
The present disclosure embodies a number of aspects that can be implemented separately from or in combination with each other.
A compound archery bow, in accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, includes a bow handle having at least one limb and a pulley rotatably mounted on the limb. A cable system includes a bowstring cable extending from the pulley and spaced from the handle for movement away from and toward the handle to propel an arrow. At least one power cable extends from the pulley to control rotation of the pulley as a function of draw of the bowstring cable. A cable slide rod extends from the handle adjacent to the cable system. A cable slide is engaged with the power cable and slidable on the cable slide rod to hold the power cable away from the bowstring cable as the bowstring cable is drawn and released. The cable slide rod is non-linear, and preferably includes an end portion spaced from the handle that is curved toward the bowstring cable.